Bellator 55 Results and Play-by-Play

Oct 22, 2011

Sherdog.com will report from the Cocopah Resort and Casino in Yuma,
Ariz., at approximately 7:00 p.m. ET with play-by-play and live
results of
Bellator 55, which features the semifinals of Bellator's Season
5 bantamweight tournament.

Round 1
Veteran referee “Big” John McCarthy makes his first Bellator
appearance for this opening middleweight tilt. Moore shoots in
almost immediately, but Steinbeiss anticipates the takedown and
tries for a guillotine as he goes down. Moore frees his head up,
but it is quickly back in danger as Steinbeiss climbs his legs up
and locks on a triangle choke. Moore postures up as Steinbeiss
attempts to adjust the choke, and eventually succeeds in escaping.
Moore attempts to pass to mount, but Steinbeiss uses an omoplata to
sweep and momentarily grabs a rear waistlock as Moore stands. Moore
attempts to flip out of the position, but Steinbeiss quickly
regains back control. Steinbeiss gets on top and starts dropping
punches on Moore, who rolls Steinbeiss’ back to the mat. Steinbeiss
is able to work his arm under Moore’s chin in the waning seconds of
the round, finishing with a Gable-grip rear-naked choke at the 4:52
mark.

Round 1
Porter comes out aggressively, pressuring Piedmont with punching
combinations before initiating a clinch against the fence. Piedmont
reverses position, landing knees and short punches as Porter slides
along the cage, looking for a way out. Porter escapes but quickly
clinches again, and is again reversed by Piedmont, who soon
disengages. Porter rushes in again for the clinch before breaking
off a moment later. Porter continues to charge forward with
punches, landing a few and attempting a trip takedown that Piedmont
quickly pops up from. Piedmont meets Porter’s aggressive knees in
the clinch and a half-hearted guillotine attempt. Porter defends a
late Piedmont takedown attempt with a knee to the body, but
Piedmont persists and scores a bodylock takedown, dropping punches
in the round’s final seconds.

Round 2
Porter rushes into the clinch once again in the round’s early
going, as he and Piedmont jockey for position and exchange short
shots inside. They break, and it’s obvious that Porter’s aggression
has slowed down, though Piedmont can do little to take advantage
outside of the occasional jab and body kick. A Piedmont takedown
attempt is defended well and creates another clinch with produces
little offense before they break it up. Porter rushes in with
punches as Piedmont backpedals and attempts to catch him with a
right uppercut and left hook. Piedmont doggedly looks for a
takedown, but has no success as Porter lands a knee and a right
hand. Another clinch sees little action as the round comes to a
close.

Round 3
Piedmont attempts to keep Porter at the end of his limbs with
repeated jabs and kicks, which proves effective as Porter lands
little in return. Porter finally explodes and lands an overhand
right on Piedmont, barreling his way into the clinch momentarily.
Porter continues landing right hands, which Piedmont responds to
with a failed takedown attempt. He succeeds in taking Porter’s back
in a standing rear waistlock, but Porter twists around and lands a
hard knee that visibly hurts Piedmont, following up with a few
inline elbows. The fighters disengage, allowing Piedmont room to
finally secure a successful double-leg, but he is unable to keep
Porter from regaining his feet and ends the bout defending another
takedown attempt.

Round 1
The lightweights feel each other out with feints and light kicks
before Beach scores a double-leg against the fence. Beach postures
up and begins to drop punches, but Jackson throws up an armbar
attempt that Beach calmly defends. Beach resumes dropping punches,
using them to open up a passing opportunity on Jackson’s left side,
where he transitions to mount and back control in short order.
Beach locks up a body triangle and a rear naked choke shortly
thereafter, eliciting the tap at 3:52 of the opening round.

Round 1
Garcia stalks early, changing his level and keeping his right hand
cocked as Ortiz tries to counter from against the fence. Ortiz
throws out the a variety of strikes in combination, but Garcia
lands more effectively with hard single strikes, including right
hands to the body and thudding low kicks. Ortiz can offer little in
return, and is contented to circle away, switch stances and shoot
half-heartedly. Garcia continues to play with his food, but
eventually pays for his hubris: Ortiz jumps in with a massive
overhand right that drops Garcia face-first to the mat, giving
Ortiz the knockout win at 4:06 of round one.

Round 1
Flores attempts to bull-rush into the clinch, but Hale easily steps
aside, landing a pair of knees in the Thai plum before a crushing
straight right hand puts Flores’ lights out. Flores hits the mat
face-first and referee Jason Herzog waves it off after just 18
seconds.

Round 1
Tirloni chops at Gable’s lead leg with kicks to the outside before
the lightweights clinch up. Gable presses the Brazilian into the
fence, but it’s Tirloni landing hard knees while Gable digs for the
single-leg. Tirloni scores with another knee upon exit which
doubles Gable over, and Gable ties up along the cage again. Gables
lands pecking knees to the thigh of Tirloni, who returns fire to
Gable’s body. Tirloni breaks off with another knee to the face,
sprawls on a shot from Gable and winds up in top position. Tirloni
works to pass Gable’s half-guard, thinks about a brabo choke and
gives it up. Gable gets to his knees and drives forward with a
single-leg. He turns it into a double, but Tirloni defends well,
lands another knee. Gable wades in to clinch and Tirloni drills him
with a knee to the head and one to the ribs.

Round 2
It’s back to the clinch early in the second, Gable pushing Tirloni
into the cage while Tirloni lands some knees inside. Gable shoots a
long double-leg and Tirloni turns it into top position again, as he
did in the first. Tirloni drops hard punches from the top while
Gable tries to kick him away. A particularly hard right gets
through for Tirloni, who dives back into his man’s closed guard
midway through the round. Mixing up rights to the body and head,
Tirloni stacks Gable up and tries to crash through his guard with
big punches. Tirloni briefly takes full mount, but Gable escapes
and survives another barrage of punches from side control. Tirloni
takes mount again with 70 seconds left in the round. This time,
there’s no escape for Gable, as Tirloni applies a tight rear-naked
choke and forces the tap at 3:54 of the second period.

Round 1
The light heavyweights feint in the center of the cage for 30
seconds until Wiuff dives for the takedown and puts M’Pumbu on his
back. Wiuff works to pass half-guard on M’Pumbu’s left side, but
the Bellator champ puts him back in butterfly guard. Wiuff moves
back to half-guard and the sequence repeats. Wiuff is throwing
sporadic, slapping punches as M’Pumbu -- cut slightly near the
outside corner of his left eye -- tries to tie him up. Wiuff leaves
his left arm in M’Pumbu’s area and M’Pumbu swings his hips around,
looking for an armbar. Wiuff waits it out and goes back to guard,
though not for long, as referee John McCarthy stands them up with
60 seconds to go. Wiuff chases M’Pumbu down and presses him into
the fence, kneeing and foot-stomping inside for the last 30
seconds.

Round 2
M’Pumbu puts a right hand on Wiuff’s chin as the American gets
inside to clinch. M’Pumbu scores with a big knee as they disengage
and Wiuff is wobbly. M’Pumbu is cautious, picking his shots and
allowing Wiuff to swing wildly. Wiuff seems to regain his footing
and his senses as he plows M’Pumbu back down to the canvas. Wiuff
lays a forearm across M’Pumbu’s throat, working slowly to pass to
side control, dropping punches and elbows. His back to the cage,
M’Pumbu throws up his legs and tries to cinch up a triangle. Wiuff
lifts him high off the mat and slams down; M’Pumbu breaks his fall,
but loses the choke. Wiuff has M’Pumbu pushed into a cage post on
the floor as he slugs away with a couple punches and drops a few
short elbows in the last 30 seconds.

Round 3
M’Pumbu looks the fresher fighter as the non-title bout enters its
final frame. He’s throwing quicker punches than Wiuff, though
neither man is connecting much in the first minute. A left hook and
a right uppercut from M’Pumbu have Wiuff moving backward. M’Pumbu
loops another left in and Wiuff takes the chance to clinch, where
he eats a few knees up the middle. M’Pumbu lands an uppercut, a
right hook and Wiuff waves him forward. M’Pumbu gets off another
four or five clean shots before Wiuff closes the distance and slows
the pace. They don’t stay there long, as M’Pumbu circles out and
zaps Wiuff with a big right. Wiuff flops forward for a takedown and
gets stuffed. M’Pumbu pounces and blasts away, trying to finish
Wiuff from guard. Wiuff survives, though, and scrambles to his
feet, driving M’Pumbu to the ground with a single-leg. M’Pumbu
works for a desperation kimura from underneath with 60 seconds
left, but soon lets it go. Wiuff appears content to stay on top and
drop little punches, keeping M’Pumbu on his back to the final
bell.

Round 1
West starts the action with low kicks, but Dantas wades inside and
fires off a speedy one-two. They twice tie up and break off after
coming to a stalemate. West is still kicking the legs and body of
Dantas, who answers with a front kick and more fast combinations.
Dantas cracks West with a right hook and gives chase to the lanky
local’s closed guard. Dantas pounds but can’t finish West, who
throws up his legs for an armbar. West goes belly down and Dantas
steps over to escape. West keeps his hands low as he kicks away at
Dantas’ stems, then stuns the Brazilian with an uppercut. Dantas
recovers and is shoved into the cage, where West stomps at his feet
and drives a solid knee up top. West has a head kick blocked, lands
low, then backs up as Dantas charges in with a long right hand.
Dantas trips West down for a second; West pops up and attacks with
one last flurry of punches and kicks.

Round 2
West continues his kick attack, high and low, chipping away at
Dantas while the 22-year-old swings for the fences and lands a nice
right. West backs Dantas up with a push kick, but not for long, as
Dantas runs back with a snappy three-piece combo. Dantas shoves
West into the fence now, throwing knees and looking for a trip
takedown. West defends and whips his heel around to the back of
Dantas’s thigh, then goes to kneeing inside while Dantas holds him
in the clinch. Dantas sweeps the leg of West and West nearly pops
back up, but Dantas takes his back in the scramble and rolls
through. Dantas has a body triangle and works to soften West up
with punches, more than two minutes still remaining in the round.
Dantas applies a neck crank, but can’t get it under the chin, and
West escapes to twist into top position. West has Dantas’ arms
pinned down and the bantamweights are jawing at one another as the
round enters its final minute. Dantas tries an armbar to no avail
and West dives back into guard with a punch. West socks away at
Dantas’ rib cage with right hands, then goes to the face with a
stiff shot. The American finishes the round on top.

Round 3
Both 135’ers are swinging big as the final round begins. West
push-kicks Dantas down, but Dantas rolls right through and back to
his feet. West sprawls on a shot from Dantas and walks the
Brazilian into the fence. He gets off a few foot stomps and a knee
before Dantas reverses the position. West keeps working on the
outside thigh of Dantas with his heel and hammerfists, then puts
Dantas’ back to the cage again. Dantas is working for a single-leg,
can’t get it, and referee Jason Herzog warns him not to hold the
fence as he pins West to it. West breaks out and lands a knee, a
slow inside thigh kick. Dantas walks inside for an exchange and
takes a thumb to his left eye. It looks bad for a moment, but
Dantas is able to resume and pushes forward on West, landing a left
hook. West keeps kicking the legs, takes a big left from Dantas and
nods his head. Down to the final 40 seconds, it’s West circling the
outside, kicking the legs and sneaking in the occasional punch. The
bell sounds and Dantas raises his hands while West shakes his
head.

Official result: Judge Luis Cobian scores the bout 29-28 for
West, while Cardo Urso has the same score for Dantas. The third
judge, Peter Rogers, scores it 30-27 for Eduardo Dantas, the winner
by split decision and first finalist in Bellator’s fifth-season
bantamweight tournament.

Round 1
The bantamweights bow during final instructions and respectfully
touch gloves once the bell rings. Vila moves along the outside
while Galvao pushes outward with his hands up, keeping Vila at
range with kicks. Vila whips a few outside leg kicks of his own as
he mixes up his angles, circles and feints a kick. Galvao fakes a
jumping knee as the stalemate continues. Vila tries to paw his way
inside with his left, but Galvao easily steps out of the way.
Halfway through the round and neither man has established any real
advantage. Galvao jumps as Vila with a knee and the Cuban gets a
takedown. He lets Galvao back to his feet and Vila charges with a
grazing one-two to the body and head. Galvao nearly sweeps the leg
of Vila with a low kick and Vila grins. Vila puts a left jab
through and Galvao stumbles backward, partially due to a slip. Vila
just misses with a glancing right uppercut and Galvao whiffs with a
high kick.

Round 2
There’s more feinting through the first 40 seconds of the frame
until Vila dips inside for a shot. It doesn’t come, so the wrestler
stays on the outside and lobs hard leg kicks inward. Galvao misses
with a leg kick and a right hand as the tepid pace continues.
Midway through the round, Vila snipes Galvao with a big right hand
and backs the bigger man up with a pair of kicks. Galvao is walking
Vila down with his guard up, but not throwing many punches. Galvao
digs a knee to Vila’s body, ducks a punch and sidesteps a takedown
attempt. Vila snaps off a solid kick to the body and takes a right
hand in return. Galvao lands a kick to the body and both men stand
in the pocket swinging for the fences, missing. Galvao knocks Vila
off-balance with a blocked right high kick, connects with a knee to
the guts and another kick to the body.

Round 3
Galvao moves forward at the bell, swinging a few leg kicks which
nearly knock Vila off-balance. Vila catches one kick and swings at
the Brazilian’s jaw, but has to wade out. Another kick is caught
and this time Vila won’t let go, scoring the takedown. Vila soon
lets Galvao back to the feet, where he catches another kick. Galvao
won’t go down this time, though, socking Vila in the head while he
defends the single-leg. Vila is moving backward exclusively now,
and Galvao is pouring on the heavier volume of punches as Vila
keeps on the retreat. Vila times a kick, shoots low and is sprawled
on by Galvao, who pops up and continues to walk his man down. Vila
scores with a right hand and Galvao answers with a hard right low
kick, and another. Galvao ducks under a right hand from Vila and
lands one of his own as the fight goes into its final minute. Vila
takes a right on the jaw, then a low kick and stumbles backward
into the cage. Galvao easily snuffs out a takedown attempt and
lands a few more leg kicks, another combination before the
bell.

Round 1
Escudero eventually drags Avila down and looks to scoot to mount.
Avila attempts to escape, but Escudero takes the opening and
latches a guillotine choke which he falls back with and floats over
to top position. Avila struggles for a good while, but simply
cannot free his head before tapping at the 1:55 mark.